Newbie-cat is newly diagnosed PLEASE HELP

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Greg Bell

Member Since 2022
Hello my name is Greg and my little buddy was recently diagnosed with diabetes. He was prescribed Glipizide 5mg twice a day and Purina DM food. He doesn't like the prescription food and will not eat it. I have tried many different wet & dry foods and he only eats very little bit of tuna or Friskies fillet in gravy. He has lost a lot of weight and doesn't seem to feel well. I hate giving him his medicine when he is not eating much at all. He has thrown up a little bit a few times but it's mostly just liquid since he's not eating much. I've talked to my veterinarian and he says to try any food he'll eat and that his glucose levels looked good. I'm afraid he is getting too much insulin and not enough nutrition, making him feel bad.
 
Hi Greg my name's Kyle, my cat Hendrick was diagnosed a couple months ago so I'm pretty new to this as well. But the people here have helped my little dude so much!!

this forum is a miracle and the people here are real life heroes. But you must help them help you -- they are very numbers driven and I love that! Data is key. So what you need to do is learn how to test your cat's blood glucose at home so you know how he is doing, and know it is safe to give insulin. And record all data on a spreadsheet for the folks here to look at and analyze so they can offer guidance.

You mentioned Glipizide but what insulin is he on and how much? How often do you give it?
 
Hendrick Cuddleclaw said:
You mentioned Glipizide but what insulin is he on and how much?
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Glipizide is an oral diabetes drug and some humans use successfully. However, Glipizide seldom works in cats and insulin is required.

For Greg, when did you start Glipizide? It seldom works in cats.
Good insulins are Lantus and the less expensive biosimilars, especially generic glargine Semglee (insulin glargine-yfgn)
https://www.fda.gov/news-events/pre...biosimilar-insulin-product-treatment-diabetes
Semglee has since been discontinued but the manufacturer sells is now as unbranded insulin glargine-yfgn. You can get generic glargine insulin at about the price one pays for real Lantus from Canada. See:
https://www.goodrx.com/semglee?dosa...ulin glargine&quantity=1&sort_type=popularity
Note the the restrictions (click on get free discount) say the cheap price does not apply for pets. However, if you click on the link that says I don't qualify, show me other option you get a higher price. The higher price depends upon the pharmacy and change frequently. For discount price of $108 the coupon good for pets varied from $115 to $154 or more so it depends upon where you go and when.
 
Hendrick Cuddleclaw said:
Hi Greg my name's Kyle, my cat Hendrick was diagnosed a couple months ago so I'm pretty new to this as well. But the people here have helped my little dude so much!!

this forum is a miracle and the people here are real life heroes. But you must help them help you -- they are very numbers driven and I love that! Data is key. So what you need to do is learn how to test your cat's blood glucose at home so you know how he is doing, and know it is safe to give insulin. And record all data on a spreadsheet for the folks here to look at and analyze so they can offer guidance.

You mentioned Glipizide but what insulin is he on and how much? How often do you give it?
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He is only on Glipizide tablets right now. My veterinarian prescribed them to him to see if it would help him instead of giving him shots. I took him back in a week later and his blood sugar had dropped from 354 to 144 with just the Glipizide tablets.
 
Greg Bell said:
He is only on Glipizide tablets right now. My veterinarian prescribed them to him to see if it would help him instead of giving him shots. I took him back in a week later and his blood sugar had dropped from 354 to 144 with just the Glipizide tablets.
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very interesting, never heard of this before and was just reading about it today thanks to your post. The consensus is that insulin is far more effective in regulation and remission.

are 354 and 144 just one-time tests? That doesn't really tell us much imo, 144 could be the low for that day, he could have been in the 600s earlier unless there was a curve done and you're referring to the avg or something?
 
Hendrick Cuddleclaw said:
very interesting, never heard of this before and was just reading about it today thanks to your post. The consensus is that insulin is far more effective in regulation and remission.

are 354 and 144 just one-time tests? That doesn't really tell us much imo, 144 could be the low for that day, he could have been in the 600s earlier unless there was a curve done and you're referring to the avg or something?
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When I took him in the first time to the veterinarian he was feeling really bad and they checked his blood sugar glucose and it was really high at 354. He prescribed him Glipizide first to see if it would help before reverting to insulin shots. A week went by and we took him back for a checkup and his glucose was at 144 about 9-10 hours after his last meal. I've read that some side effects of the Glipizide is vomiting and lack of appetite
 
What is he currently eating? It's possible the glipizide is helping but a few thoughts:
  • A diet change (reduction in carbs) can often have a big effect. So even if you dropped his carbs by 10% that could be what you're seeing
  • BG is often higher at the vet due to stress
  • Even with the 144 that is higher than you want and in the diabetic range. A regulated cat runs in the 50-120 range in a human meter, or roughly 68-150 on a pet meter. It is also possible the inappetence is dropping numbers a bit
How long does the vet want you to try the glipizide for?

He is losing weight because he is diabetic, and also not eating enough. Diabetics do not fully process food, so they very often lose weight. My cat had to eat twice as much when he was unregulated.

Inappetence is a very big concern here, because he is at higher risk of ketones and DKA. You will want to go out and buy some urine ketone strips at any human pharmacy and check his urine daily. Anything above trace requires immediate attention.

Inappetence can also be caused by pancreatitis, a fairly common issue with diabetic cats. Does he seem nauseous at all? Hanging by bowls, licking his lips? In pain?
 
FrostD said:
What is he currently eating? It's possible the glipizide is helping but a few thoughts:
  • A diet change (reduction in carbs) can often have a big effect. So even if you dropped his carbs by 10% that could be what you're seeing
  • BG is often higher at the vet due to stress
  • Even with the 144 that is higher than you want and in the diabetic range. A regulated cat runs in the 50-120 range in a human meter, or roughly 68-150 on a pet meter. It is also possible the inappetence is dropping numbers a bit
How long does the vet want you to try the glipizide for?

He is losing weight because he is diabetic, and also not eating enough. Diabetics do not fully process food, so they very often lose weight. My cat had to eat twice as much when he was unregulated.

Inappetence is a very big concern here, because he is at higher risk of ketones and DKA. You will want to go out and buy some urine ketone strips at any human pharmacy and check his urine daily. Anything above trace requires immediate attention.

Inappetence can also be caused by pancreatitis, a fairly common issue with diabetic cats. Does he seem nauseous at all? Hanging by bowls, licking his lips? In pain?
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The vet didn't exactly say how long to try the glipizide for, just that he wants him to be re-evaluated in a few weeks and go from there. No he doesn't seem to be in any pain or discomfort, he does seem lethargic from time to time.
 
Greg Bell said:
The vet didn't exactly say how long to try the glipizide for, just that he wants him to be re-evaluated in a few weeks and go from there. No he doesn't seem to be in any pain or discomfort, he does seem lethargic from time to time.
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Ok we don't like "lethargic" either because that's often associated with DKA as well. Does his breath smell odd, like maybe pennies or acetone? Please do get some ketone strips ASAP, in the meantime get him to eat whatever you can and push lots of fluids. Add water to his food, etc.
 
FrostD said:
Ok we don't like "lethargic" either because that's often associated with DKA as well. Does his breath smell odd, like maybe pennies or acetone? Please do get some ketone strips ASAP, in the meantime get him to eat whatever you can and push lots of fluids. Add water to his food, etc.
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No his breath does not smell odd. Where do I find these ketone strips?
 
If you live in the US you can get them at Walmart or in any pharmacy. In the rest of the world get at a pharmacy. Ask for Ketostix or Dia-Ketostix. You need to collect a urine sample and follow the directions on the bottle. Cats should not have any ketones in the urine. post the result.
How is he now?
 
Also want to mention that Glipizide is not suitable for diabetic cats.
It works by making the Pancras work harder which stresses the pancreas. Your cat will not go into remission on glipizide
Insulin works by supporting the pancreas while it can heal and hopefully heal.

If he was my kitty I would be going back to the vet asap and getting him started on a suitable insulin such as Lantus or Prozinc.
 
I took him to another vet this morning for a second opinion. They did a full lab test on him and his ketones were normal however his liver function is abnormal. He said to stop the glipizide and focus on getting the liver function back to more normal. His glucose is slightly elevated but not astronomical. He prescribed him some anti-nausea medicine along with a couple of liver medications. He got an IV and seems to be feeling better at the moment. We'll re-evaluate in a week and go from there.
 
Did he suggest anything for the liver? Denamarin is one possible supplement, milk thistle powder is another
 
I would caution you about not starting the insulin if the blood glucose is above normal.
Diabetic cats need insulin and if they do not get it are in danger of forming ketones which can rapidly turn to diabetic ketoacidosis which is extremely serious.
You can test the urine for ketones using Ketostix which you can buy from Walmart or a pharmacy. You need to collect a urine sample from your cat and follow the directions on the bottle. Read the results at exactly 15 seconds. Anything above a trace needs vet attention and insulin. In fact I would go back to the vet if there was even a trace seeing he is not on insulin.
If he were my kitty I would go out today and buy the Ketostix.

I can’t see any reason why he can’t be on insulin while the liver issue is being sorted out.
 
**UPDATE**
My little buddy went to heaven this morning. He had not been eating or drinking anything for the past few days and would stay under the beds hardly ever coming out. His liver was in failure and he was developing jaundice. So I called my vet and made the very hard decision to let hm go. He is no longer in pain and suffering and is happy and healthy again up above. He went very fast a peaceful. I am crushed but I know he is feeling better and in a better place. Thank you all so much for your help and advice. I hope and pray your little guys and gals live their best life, happy and healthy.
 
Greg Bell said:
**UPDATE**
My little buddy went to heaven this morning. He had not been eating or drinking anything for the past few days and would stay under the beds hardly ever coming out. His liver was in failure and he was developing jaundice. So I called my vet and made the very hard decision to let hm go. He is no longer in pain and suffering and is happy and healthy again up above. He went very fast a peaceful. I am crushed but I know he is feeling better and in a better place. Thank you all so much for your help and advice. I hope and pray your little guys and gals live their best life, happy and healthy.
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I'm new here. I am deeply sorry for your loss! Take comfort in the fact that your fur baby was loved and you did your best to take good care of him/her.
 
Bron and Sheba (GA) said:
I would caution you about not starting the insulin if the blood glucose is above normal.
Diabetic cats need insulin and if they do not get it are in danger of forming ketones which can rapidly turn to diabetic ketoacidosis which is extremely serious.
You can test the urine for ketones using Ketostix which you can buy from Walmart or a pharmacy. You need to collect a urine sample from your cat and follow the directions on the bottle. Read the results at exactly 15 seconds. Anything above a trace needs vet attention and insulin. In fact I would go back to the vet if there was even a trace seeing he is not on insulin.
If he were my kitty I would go out today and buy the Ketostix.

I can’t see any reason why he can’t be on insulin while the liver issue is being sorted out.
Click to expand...
I'm new here. My cat was recently diagnosed with diabetes. His latest trip to the vet last week his BG was still too high and vet increase insulin to 4U 2x a day. Vet also explained his liver enzymes were elevated and ran a thyroid test which came out normal. Vet further stated that Fluffy may be having something going on in the liver and put him on meds for that. Should I be alarmed? I cannot remember the name of the oral suspension prescribed since I'm not at home to look. I never had a diabetic cat. Fluff is active now and seems to be feeling better and better since his original diagnosis mid March. All he did was lay around and not active. Ate normally, just looked like he didn't feel good and lost weight, going from nearly 17 lbs to 12.4 lbs. He's playing again with the other cats. His weight is staying the same. He eats mostly wet food now but has some access to dry food because of the other cats. All my cats (7) would prefer wet food but its far too expensive to switch them over to just WET! He still urinating quite a bit and is now on 4U 2x a day for 10 days, then per vet increase to 5U if he is still urinating a lot. I'm picking up Walmart people glucometer tonight after work. I hope I'm doing everything correctly. I cannot loose my precious boy! He's a maincoon mix and 16yrs old.
 
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